CIVIL LAW: VELASCO CASE DOCTRINES

1. Mirror Doctrine (Locsin v. Hizon)

-failure to inquire beyond title’s face when circumstances raise suspicion cannot be
buyers in good faith
An innocent purchaser for value is one who buys the property of another without notice that
some other person has a right to or interest in it, and who pays a full and fair price at the time of
the purchase or before receiving any notice of another person’s claim.
Defective title may be a source of a completely legal and valid title, provided that the buyer is an
innocent third person who, in good faith, relied on the correctness of the title.
Mirror doctrine- in dealing with registered land, every person may safely rely on the face of the
title and not obliged to inquire beyond it. Exception: when the buyer has actual knowledge of the
facts and circumstances that would impel a reasonably prudent man to inquire into the status of
property.
2. Nuisance per se v. Nuisance per accidens (Aquino v. Mun. of Malay)
-LGU can issue demolition orders without court order even if property is not a nuisance
per se in the exercise of police power (Boracay West Cove hotel- nuisance per accidens)
Nuisance per se- nuisance at all times and under any circumstances, regardless of location or
surrounding
Nuisance per accidens- a nuisance only because of a particular incident or circumstance
General Rule: LGUs have no power to declare a particular thing as a nuisance unless such thing
is a nuisance per se
Exception: In the exercise of police power and general welfare clause
3. 24% p.a. penalty unconscionable (MCMP v. Monark)
-Courts may reduce exorbitant and unconscionable rates (24%) in the penalty clause of
the contract
Art. 1229, CC: the judge may equitably reduce the penalty when the principal obligation has
been partly or irregularly complied with.
The courts, notwithstanding the absence of performance, may also reduce penalty if it is
iniquitous or unconscionable.
4. No need for republication in cases of amended petition for registration (Republic v.
San Mateo)
-Amendments in a published petition which involve only a reduction of the original area
no longer require a republication
Amendments in a petition that do not involve an addition but only a reduction of the original area
that was published no longer require a republication since the amended area was already
included during the first publication.
 5. Equitable mortgage v. Pactum commissorium (Solitarios v. Jaque)
-Respondents supposedly bought the mortgaged lot directly from petitioners to offset the
loan but petitioners remain in possession even after purported absolute sale
Equitable mortgage (Art. 1602 (6))- a purported contract of sale where the vendor remains in
physical possession of the land as lessee or otherwise
Pactum Commissorium (Art. 2088)- the creditor cannot appropriate the things given by way of
pledge or mortgage, or dispose them
The only right of a mortgagee in case of non-payment of debt secured by mortgage would be to
foreclose the mortgage and have the encumbered property sold to satisfy outstanding
indebtedness. The mortgagor’s default does not operate to automatically vest on the mortgagee
the ownership of the encumbered property.
6. Issued OCT as condition precedent in reconstitution cases (Republic v. Sanchez)
-Proof that OCT has been established first for reconstitution of lost or destroyed OCT
A petition for reconstitution of lost or destroyed OCT requires, as a condition precedent, that an
OCT has indeed been issued.
Sec. 15 RA 26: Before a certificate of title which has been lost or destroyed may be
reconstituted, it must be proved by the claimants that said certificate of title was still in force at
the time it was lost or destroyed, among others.
7. Surname, choice of illegitimate child (Grande v. Antontio)
-May a father compel his illegitimate children to use his surname upon his recognition to
their filiation? No.
General Rule: An illegitimate child shall use the surname of his or her mother
Exception: In case his or her filiation is expressly recognized by the father through the record of
birth appearing in the civil register or when an admission in a public document or private
handwritten instrument is made by the father.
Art. 176 of FC gives the illegitimate children the right to decide if they want to use the surname
of father or not.
8. Right of repurchase under CA 141= 5yrs (Bautista v. Lindo)
-Can Bautista repurchase the subject property pursuant to Sec. 119 of CA 141 even if
there is no stipulation of repurchase under the contract? Yes.
Sec. 119 CA 141 (Public Land Act): Every conveyance of land acquired under the free patent or
homestead provisions, when proper, shall be subject to repurchase by the applicant, his widow,
or legal heirs, within a period of 5 years from the date of the conveyance.
While the deeds of sale do not explicitly grants the right of repurchase, the provisions of positive
law which regulate contracts are deemed integrated and written therein although a contract is the
law between the parties.
The law is deemed written into every contract.
 9. Child custody, no res judicata (Beckett v. Sarmiento)
-Order giving provisional custody to mother despite the earlier judgment granting father
full and permanent custody over child
The grant of custody is not permanent and unalterable and can always be re-examined and
adjusted.
Art. 213 FC: No child under 7 years of age shall be separated from the mother unless the court
finds compelling reasons to order otherwise. And if already over 7 years of age, the child’s
choice as to which of his parents he prefers to be under custody shall be respected unless the
parent choses proves to be unfit.
The welfare, the best interests, the benefit, and the good of the child must be determined as of the
time that either parent is choses to be the custodian.
10. Requirement for valid compromise (Gaisano v. Akol)
-Judgment based on agreement to terminate action waiving any and all claims is final and
executory
A compromise agreement is a contract whereby the parties make reciprocal concessions, avoid
litigation, or put an end to one already commenced. Its validity depends on its fulfilment of the
requisites and principles of contracts dictated by law; its terms and conditions being not contrary
to law, morals, good customs, public policy and public order.
11. Sales of shares of stock without authority- null and void (Pacific Rehouse v. EIB)
-Without of consent of petitioner, respondent sold the DMCI shares of stock for a lesser
value
Art. 1881: The agent must act within the scope of his authority.
The sale of DMCI shares is null and void for lack of authority to do so, for petitioners never gave
their consent or permission of the sale.
12. Cadastral and quieting of title may proceed independently (Luzuriaga v. Republic)
When two cases involve different causes of action, each individual case can proceed
independently, albeit a consolidation of both cases would be ideal to obviate multiplicity of suits.
Where the identity and area of the claimed property are not the subjects of amendment but other
collateral matters, a new publication is not needed. It is only essential in case any additional
territory or change in the area of the claim is included in the amendment. Thus, RTC acquired
jurisdiction over the cadastral case even if amended petition was not published.
13. Process for judicial confirmation of imperfect title (Republic v. INC)
-May a judicial confirmation of imperfect title prosper even when the subject property
has been declared as alienable only 5 years before it was applied for registration? Yes.
Sec. 14(1) of PD 1529 merely requires the property sought to be registered as already alienable
and disposable at the time the application for registration of title is filed.
 14. Possession + ownership= imprescriptible (Aqualab v. Pagobo)
-Respondents filed an action for reconveyance against petitioners who disturbed their
peaceful occupation/possession of subject lots and who entered into fraudulent
transaction of the lots
An action for annulment of title or reconveyance based on fraud is imprescriptible where the
plaintiff is in possession of the property subject of the acts. The prescriptive period for the
reconveyance of fraudulently registered real property is 10 years, reckoned from the date of the
issuance of the certificate of title, if the plaintiff is not in possession. One who is in actual
possession of a piece of land on a claim of ownership thereof may wait until his possession is
disturbed or his title is attacked before taking steps to vindicate his right.
15. Art. 26 FC (Bayot v. CA)
-Divorce decree obtained by foreign spouse in a foreign country is valid and effective in
PH
Art. 26 FC: Where a marriage between a Filipino citizen and a foreigner is validly celebrated and
a divorce is thereafter validly obtained abroad by the alien spouse capacitating him or her to
remarry, the Filipino spouse shall likewise have capacity to remarry under PH law.
Elements: 1. Valid marriage that has been celebrated between Filipino citizen and a foreigner
2. Valid divorce obtained by the alien spouse capacitating him or her to remarry
The reckoning point is not the citizenship of the parties at the time of the celebration of marriage
but their citizenship at the time of a valid divorce is obtained abroad by the alien spouse
capacitating the latter to remarry.
16. Continuing guaranty/ continuing suretyship (Gateway Electronics v. Delos Reyes)
-Deed of suretyship: Geronimo undertook to secure all obligations without any
specification as to the period of the loan
Continuing guaranty- is one which is not limited to a single transaction but which contemplates a
future course of dealing, covering a series of transactions, generally for an indefinite time or until
revoked.
Continuing suretyship- covers current and future loans provided that with respect to future loan
transactions, they are within the description or contemplation of the contract of guaranty.
17. Elements of estoppel (Equitable v. RCBC)
-A party invoking doctrine of estoppel must have been mislead to one’s prejudice
1. Conduct which amounts to a false representation or concealment of material facts or
at least which calculated to convey the impression that the facts are otherwise than,
and inconsistent with, those which the party subsequently attempts to assert
2. Intention, or at least expectation, that such conduct shall be acted upon by the other
party
3. Knowledge, actual or constructive, of the actual facts
 18. Effect on non-inclusion of a party in a compromise agreement (Domingo Realty v.
CA)
-Mere non-inclusion of a party does not nullify a valid compromise agreement
The only legal effect of the non-inclusion of party in a compromise agreement is that said party
cannot be bound by the terms of the agreement. The compromise agreement shall however be
valid and binding as to the parties who signed thereto.
19. Adverse possession in registered property (Samahan ng Masang Pilipino sa Makati
v. BCDA)
-Petitioners who had taken possession of the government land by illegal means without
any legal basis cannot claim adverse possession of public land
Registered property could not be acquired through adverse possession.
Prescription does not apply if the subject land is covered by a Torrens title.